Is Cold Weather Playing A Large Role In NFL's Head Coach Carousel?

By Devin O'Barr

Howard Smith – USA TODAY Sports

As of right now, the three NFL teams without a head coach all play in cold-weather climates. In fact, one can argue that the Minnesota Vikings, Cleveland Browns and Detroit Lions play in three of the coldest cities in the United States. Every head coach is different, but the argument being made right now is that potential candidates are leaving these northwest cities in the dust for warm-weather climates.

Ken Whisenhunt was just the most recent head coach to turn down a cold-weather job for a warm one as the San Diego Chargers‘ offensive coordinator booked for the Tennessee Titans on Monday. Detroit was supposed to be the favorite to land Whisenhunt, but apparently the Music City had the inside track on this coordinator.

Furthermore, the Vikings are also an interesting team as they will be playing outdoors in both 2014 and 2015. Bill O’Brien was reportedly very high on the Vikings’ list, but was checked off rather quickly after accepting a job with the Houston Texans. While some of this may be circumstantial evidence, the facts don’t lie and three of the four head coaches hired this offseason all play in warm-weather locations. And the only team left off that list is the Washington Redskins, a team that doesn’t exactly play in the frigid cold often seen in Minnesota.

NFL fans are starting to see a trend, and if your favorite teams plays in a colder climate then it might be more difficult for your team to snag a head coach than say the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.